Though not everyone consumes it in equal proportions, bread is a vital ingredient in the diet of all social classes, on weekdays and holidays, and constitutes our main source of carbohydrates and calories. The lower the social class, the more significant the intake of bread; the government is therefore obliged to supply it, as part of its responsibility for the welfare of its citizens.
The slogan "Bread and Work!" was the first expression of Israeli social protest, voiced in the wave of demonstrations that rocked the country in 1949. Since then it has been raised again and again in times of distress and social unrest. Rather than reflecting an actual lack of bread, it conveys feelings of frustration, anger, and disillusionment with the ruling establishment - and, above all, the demand for a dignified existence.
The films and exhibits in this gallery document moments of social unrest which gave rise to protest movements that used bread as a symbol, from the period of the British Mandate and up to the "Bread Square" demonstrations in Tel Aviv in 2002-2005.